Greece faces crunch EU talks

Greece's new government is in for a to clash with its eurozone creditors over easing the terms of its bailout program at an emergency meeting in Brussels. Wednesday's gathering of finance ministers from the 19 eurozone countries had been called to find common ground on Greece's demand to reduce the burden of its bailout loans and ease back on budget austerity measures.

The new radical left government won elections last month on a promise to get concessions from Greece's bailout lenders, which include the EU Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Ahead of the meeting, Greece's Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras, said there was "no way back" for his government in its quest to rewrite its bailout terms. The new Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis reiterated Athens' demand for renegotiating Greece's debt, totaling 315 billion euro ($356 billion).

"The crucial factor is that Greece's debt cannot be repaid in the near future," Varoufakis told German magazine Stern in an interview published Wednesday.

Germany-led opposition

Time is running out for Greece, with the European portion of its rescue package due to expire at the end of the month. Athens is rejecting talk of an extension to the program, running up against fiscally conservative countries such as Germany, which have rejected the idea of wholesale changes to bailout deals.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble said that Greece would have to fulfill all commitments to its international creditors if it wants to continue enlisting European help for its debt problem.

Speaking to journalists in Istanbul after a two-day meeting of the Group of 20 largest economies, Schäuble said he expected the Greek government to have a clear plan ready for review at the upcoming Eurogroup meeting in Brussels.

"We're not negotiating a new program. We already have a program," he added.

However, Varoufakis said Tuesday that he would remain steadfast in the demands to his fellow ministers. "If you are not willing to even consider a clash, then you are not negotiating," the minister said, adding, "We are not seeking a clash. We will do everything to avoid it."

'Bridge program'

According to Greek finance ministry sources, Athens plans to propose a bridge program to cover its funding needs until it can negotiate a replacement for its bailout program, which would come into force in September.

Among other measures, the government was aiming to scrap 30 percent of the reform pledges agreed under the bailout and replace these with 10 new measures, the source told the German news agency DPA. Furthermore, Athens was proposing a debt swap to ease its repayment obligations.

Further austerity measures are a "red line" that Athens would not cross, the source added, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Expectations are low that a solution will be reached this week. Tsipras is due to debate the issue with his fellow European Union leaders at a summit on Thursday, with the Eurogroup due to reconvene for a decisive meeting on Monday.

uhe/nz (dpa, Reuters, AFP, AP)